The couple is seeking a special use permit to expand the dog daycare into warehouse space adjacent to the existing buildings at 2856 S. Main, about a half-block north of Eisenhower.

The proposal will go before the Ann Arbor Planning Commission at its meeting at 7 p.m. tonight in City Hall.

Staff is recommending approval (read the report here). It previously weighed the proposal in December, when a decision was postponed.

Since then, the Svobodas took steps to address neighbors' concerns, including meeting with them to get more feedback.

Now, based on that information, staff has redrawn the proposal to cap the number of dogs on the premises at 125, and also:

• Limit the size of the business to 10,000 square feet.
• Restrict the hours of operation to 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekdays and 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekends.
• Allow indoor boarding when the business is closed.
• Require additional fire extinguishers and “no parking” signs in fire lanes.

If the planning commission authorizes the special exception, the Svobodas hope to start the expansion this fall. The size will go from the current 3,200 square feet to 8,800.

The business should eventually triple, Svoboda said, though “that won’t happen overnight.”

“We’ve hopeful that we’ll be able to double fairly quickly and in the next year or two, triple,” she said.

The expansion also comes with additional hiring, she said. The staff will go from 9 to an eventual 18.

Issues that emerged when the special use proposal was introduced in late 2009 included concerns of nearby residents, who questioned how noise, smell and traffic could increase if the business expanded.

Over the past several months, the Svobodas and city staff sought answers. 

According to the staff report on the expansion, “This study indicates barking dogs inside the facility made no measurable changes in noise levels at the property line, and increasing the number of dogs inside the facility should not affect noise levels at the property line.”

Odors also should not be an issue due to the existing waste disposal practices on site, the report said.

The recommendation to approve the plan says, “ The … effect of the proposed use on public services would not be hazardous or inconvenient to the neighborhood nor unduly conflict with the normal traffic or the neighborhood.”

Svoboda did not have a cost estimate for the expansion, if it’s approved.

However, she said the business has had a 25-person waitlist for its pet-care services.

“There’s definitely a need that we can see,” Svoboda said.

Paula Gardner is Business News Director of AnnArbor.com. Contact her at 734-623-2586 or by email. Sign up for the weekly Business Review newsletter, distributed every Thursday, here.